This invention relates to a paper feeding cassette, particularly, to a paper feeding cassette for use in an electronic copying apparatus.
In general, a paper feeding cassette is mounted to the body of an electronic copying apparatus and houses a pile of a number of sheets of paper.
FIGS. 1 and 2 appended hereto collectively show a conventional paper feeding cassette 10. It is seen that the cassette 10 comprises a box-like body 12, a vertically movable bottom plate 16, a rear upright plate 18 and a movable side plate 20. The front portion of a paper pile 14 housed in the body 12 is disposed on the movable bottom plate 16. Further, the rear and side edges of the paper pile 14 are regulated by the plates 18 and 20, respectively. The bottom plate 16 is upwardly urged by a pair of main springs 22 and a pair of auxiliary springs 24 such that the uppermost paper of the paper pile 14 abuts against a take-up roller 26 of an electronic copying apparatus.
The conventional paper feeding cassette 10 described above necessitates a plurality of movable bottom plates of different widths. Specifically, where a paper of a different width is used, a movable bottom plate of a suitable width should be used in accordance with the width of the paper. Naturally, it is very troublesome to replace the movable bottom plate. In addition, a cassette necessitating a plurality of movable bottom plates is not desirable in terms of the required space and cost.